Cricketers, experts fume at boundary count deciding WC winner

NEW DELHI, July 15 (https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports): Hundred overs of ODI cricket followed by the 'Super Over' couldn't produce a winner in the final of the 2019 ICC World Cup on Sunday.

Eyes then moved from the field to the tournament's rule book after both England and New Zealand scored 15 runs each. The 'Super Over' rule said that in case it too fails to break the tie in the final, the team that hit more boundaries (fours and sixes combined) wins the trophy. Fair? The debate is on, and cricket experts aren't particularly happy with the rule.

The regulation play of 100 overs ended in New Zealand scoring 241/8 after winning the toss and opting to bat at Lord's. The home team's run-chase then ended at 241 all out off the last ball of the match. The game went into the 'Super Over' and the tie stood as it is, at the end of 12 balls. But England celebrated and New Zealand mourned.

The hosts won the World Cup by virtue of hitting 26 boundaries compared to 17 by the Kiwi batsmen.

Cricket experts and fans, however, believe the match didn't deserve a winner and the trophy should have been shared, and that deciding a winner based on the number of boundaries a team hit is nothing less than absurd.

Former cricketers and experts took to Twitter to express their views. Some called the rule and subsequent result "cruel", some found it "ridiculous" and some labelled it as "horrible".

"Some rules in cricket definitely needs a serious look in," tweeted Indian opener Rohit Sharma on Monday.